


(let me show you my) adoration

by joltik



Series: the divine & the profane [2]
Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Body Worship, Crimson Flower, Cunnilingus, F/F, Porn with Feelings, Post-Timeskip | War Phase (Fire Emblem: Three Houses), as close as you can get to slowburn in a smut oneshot that's a sequel to another smut oneshot, is there something between pre-relationship and established relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-04
Updated: 2020-01-04
Packaged: 2021-02-25 22:47:34
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,747
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21703222
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/joltik/pseuds/joltik
Summary: The sun shines on Edelgard’s horned crown, turns her white hair into a halo. Byleth feels like she’s seen a true goddess.It’s the closest she’s ever felt to experiencing religion, she realizes—it’s not that she worships Edelgard, per se...she’s not perfect, not infallible, and Byleth doesn’t always agree with her, her words or her actions or any of that. But, paradoxically, she thinks that’s why she can follow her. She knows she’s not perfect, knows the rough edges, but also she knows her ideals, knows the future she envisions, and knows that she can play a real role in making that a reality.She’s utterly human, and she’s someone Byleth knows she can believe in, has known it from the magnetic pull that’s drawn her to Edelgard from the very beginning. And for the moment, that’s all that really matters.“...I don’t know if I’m in love with you. I don’t know what loveis. But I know...the strength of my feelings for you.“El. Let me show you.”
Relationships: Edelgard von Hresvelg/My Unit | Byleth
Series: the divine & the profane [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1562728
Comments: 7
Kudos: 303





	(let me show you my) adoration

**Author's Note:**

> This is a sequel/answer of sorts to my other fic, "if this body's a temple, let us defile it." You technically don't have to read that one to get the gist of this one, I suppose, but I recommend it for context.
> 
> This is also a very different fic from its predecessor, largely because it's from Byleth's point of view. So there's not quite as much of a focus on the aspects related to religion specifically, but there's still some soft blasphemy (because what's the fun of Edeleth if there's none of that)

_“Professor. Kill Edelgard at once.”_

_The rest of Rhea’s words are drowned out by the low thrum of blood in Byleth’s ears. She feels time freeze for a moment—not literally, not by Sothis’ hand, but by the sheer gravity of the moment—and she turns to look at Rhea as she recalls Jeralt’s distrust toward Rhea, the times he’d cautioned her about her and what he’d written in his diary, as well as her own misgivings toward the archbishop…_

_It's not really any logic or thought that leads her to turn her blade against the heavens, against Rhea. It's the feeling that if she follows Rhea's orders she'll be making a terrible mistake, and the knowledge that...in spite of Edelgard's actions in the tomb, in spite of her misgivings...she doesn't know why, but she_ believes _in Edelgard, in a way she's never believed in anyone or anything before in her life._

_And if she can guide her down the right path and make the world she envisions a reality, then..._

* * *

It’s been a couple of days since...that conversation she’d had with Edelgard, in her room, and everything that came after. They haven’t talked about it. There had been a time when Edelgard looked like she was going to say something, only to abruptly change the subject, and that was all right. Byleth is okay with not talking about it.

The weather’s cleared up somewhat, which is nice. It’s still cool and cloudy, with intermittent gusts of wind, but it’s much better weather for fishing. Byleth’s grateful for that. She’s been out at the fishing pond all morning when she’s approached by Dorothea. “Good morning, Professor,” she says.

“Good morning, Dorothea,” Byleth says, keeping her eyes on the line. “I can’t say I’m used to seeing you here. Planning to fish?”

“Oh, no,” Dorothea laughs. “I’m rotten at fishing. I just came out here to find you.”

“Hm,” Byleth says. “Well, you found me.”

“I did.” There’s silence as Byleth waits for Dorothea to continue at her own pace. “I was actually wondering if you’re available later. For tea, maybe. It feels like it’s been a while since we were just able to sit down and chat.”

Byleth idly taps the side of her fishing rod as she thinks. “That should be fine. I have some free time this afternoon, after the war council.” It’s when she’d usually have tea with Edelgard, but she has prior commitments today; they try to make time for tea daily, but Byleth knows that it’s a fact of life that the emperor will be too busy at times, and she does not resent her for it. Even if her stomach clenches a little in disappointment whenever it happens.

“Good, I think we’re overdue for a little girl talk,” Dorothea says, her voice a little brighter than Byleth’s heard it in a while. “Like about where those marks on your neck came from,” she continues, sounding quite amused.

“Oh, those.” Byleth continues not to look up from her fishing as she says, completely deadpan, “It was a fishing accident.”

“...A fishing accident, you say.”

“Yes. It was quite a large fish...a Fódlany, perhaps? Surprisingly vicious,” she says, with a decisive nod.

“Was it now,” Dorothea says with a snort.

It’s not that Byleth expects Dorothea to believe her, of course. That isn’t the point at all. Byleth feels no particular shame for the marks or the implications they carry, but she doesn’t feel any particular urge to tell anyone about them, nor does she suspect Edelgard would prefer it. Her answers are nonsense, but of the type that amuses her, and delivered in such a way to usually deflect further questioning. “Yes,” Byleth says, her tone still utterly deadpan. “Was that all, Dorothea?”

“Yes, I suppose so, until our tea date later. You can tell me all about your fish tale then, over tea.”

Byleth makes a noncommittal noise as she reels in her line.

* * *

After grabbing a quick breakfast from the dining hall, Byleth makes her way to Seteth’s former office, where Edelgard typically works nowadays. Sure enough, she finds her there, neck deep in paperwork, even though it’s still fairly early in the morning. Byleth coughs, lightly, to get attention, and Edelgard startles. “Good morning, my teacher,” she says, neatening the stacks of paperwork in front of her where they’ve scattered slightly. “I’m sorry I didn’t notice you, I was—”

“Hard at work, as always.”

“Yes, well, it’s a lot of work running an empire. Even moreso, one at war,” Edelgard says as she signs a document. “Did you need something, my teacher?”

“I just wanted to see you,” she says, and Edelgard stares at her for a moment.

“I see,” Edelgard says, finally.

( _When she first awakens from her five year long slumber, Byleth is almost immediately struck by how beautiful Edelgard had become, seemingly in the blink of an eye. She had always been pretty, Byleth supposes, well put together and poised, but. It’s different now._

_The first thing she notices is the headpiece; the golden horns are striking, intimidating, and the red of her outfit suits her. The actual physical changes are more subtle, but the curve of her jaw has definitely become sharper, what little baby fat had remained now gone. Her eyes are sharper, too...she looks. Intimidating, with a presence larger than life, certainly larger than her own slight frame. And yet, at the same time, so very beautiful._ )

“Edelgard. Do you want some saghert and cream? I brought some from the dining hall, since I figured you haven’t eaten breakfast yet.”

“That’s...very thoughtful of you, my teacher. Thank you.”

Byleth stands at Edelgard’s side in comfortable silence as she eats. She ends up with a bit of cream next to the corner of her mouth, and Byleth finds herself thinking that it’s cute. “You know,” Byleth ends up saying eventually, “you only ever refer to me as your teacher. Why is that?”

Edelgard blinks. “I think I’m hardly the only person who still refers to you by title.”

“You always do it, though. And I don’t believe I’ve ever heard you refer to me by name.”

Edelgard looks oddly uncomfortable. “It’s...a proper title, even if you aren’t currently teaching me per se. It’s...a matter of propriety.”

“Hm,” Byleth says.

There’s silence again until Edelgard finishes eating, and Byleth notices when Edelgard wipes away the speck of cream from her mouth; for some silly reason, she feels some mild regret at this. “Thank you for the food, my teacher. It...hadn’t occurred to me how hungry I was until I’d eaten.”

“That’s something I have heard from you far too often,” Byleth says, frowning slightly. “You should take care of yourself.”

Edelgard also frowns. “It isn’t as though I skip meals on purpose. It’s just that I’m so busy being emperor that it sometimes slips my mind, with all of the other things I have to think about.”

“And as emperor,” Byleth says, smiling, “you should take care of yourself. You’re important.”

“Yes, well, then it is a good thing I have you around to take care of me,” Edelgard says, before coloring slightly a moment later. “Or...to keep an eye out for me, I suppose.”

“And it is my honor to do so,” Byleth says.

* * *

_“I’m still not certain I see the point of these lessons you are so insistent on giving me, my teacher,” Edelgard says with a sigh, pulling on an apron. “It seemed...frivolous while I was a student, and moreso to resume as emperor…”_

_“Even emperors have to eat,” Byleth says. “And sometimes, even an emperor may need to cook.”_

_“...If you don’t mind me saying, I find that highly unlikely.”_

_“It’s useful to know. Let’s say you have to rough it, out in the field, and there’s no one there to cook for you. You still need to eat.”_

_“Fending for oneself in the wilderness is...one thing, I suppose, although if I were to be stranded with no one else around, I think there would be much bigger problems. But that’s rather a different matter than cooking in a kitchen, I would think.”_

_“The fundamentals are still the same,” Byleth says with a nod. “Besides, it was one of the few things I knew before coming to Garreg Mach, and it’s something I want to share with you.” Edelgard looks pensive, until Byleth adds, “Because you are kind of dreadful at it,” at which point she scowls._

_“I am. Aware that I am lacking in experience in this matter,” Edelgard says curtly. “But, again, I fail to see why—”_

_“I’ll take care of the meat if you’ll cut the vegetables. Is that okay, Edelgard?”_

_Edelgard sighs. “Yes, all right, fine.” They work in silence save for the rhythmic sounds of knives against cutting boards. After some time, Edelgard says, “I still find this to be horribly inefficient compared to using an axe.”_

_Byleth takes a moment to observe her chopping. “That’s because you’re doing it wrong,” she says._

_“I’m...cutting wrong?”_

_“Yes, here,” she says, coming up behind her and gently guiding her hand to show her the proper motion. “Like this. It’s more efficient.”_

_“I...I see.”_

_The memory of the warmth of Edelgard’s hand and the light flush she could see on Edelgard’s face when she pulled away linger, and she files the odd feeling this sends through her away for later._

* * *

After visiting Edelgard, Byleth heads over to the training hall to do some training sets. Sparring with someone else would be better, of course, but there’s no one around at the moment and she’s used to training on her own. 

If she wants to be able to protect Edelgard, to fight for her, she cannot afford to become rusty.

She goes through a quick warmup, then practices simple swings followed by more elaborate cuts and thrusts, then incorporating her footwork, all using a simple steel sword because the weight feels more comforting than a training sword. She practices for about an hour, until she’s covered in sweat and there’s a satisfying burn in her muscles.

_(“Edelgard. Do you want to spar?” It had been some time since Byleth’s return, but they hadn’t had a chance to properly spar yet, and while she had seen Edelgard in battle she was itching to test her former student’s skills firsthand._

_Edelgard looks up from her work, setting down her quill carefully. After a thoughtful pause, she says, “Sure. It would be a welcome distraction. Although I feel I should warn you, I’m much better than I was five years ago.”_

_Byleth answers her smirk with a smile. “I look forward to seeing you prove it, then.”_

_They meet at the training hall and retrieve their preferred weapons—Byleth a training sword, Edelgard a training axe—and square off._

_When the two cross blades, it becomes clear that Byleth is still somewhat faster but that Edelgard’s technical skills have greatly improved from five years ago. Her strikes are as powerful as ever but with a much higher precision, and Byleth finds herself having to work much harder to keep up with her as Edelgard goes on the offensive. Edelgard does an overhead strike, and Byleth parries; Byleth’s riposte is easily blocked, and Edelgard goes for a diagonal strike, which Byleth has to step back to counter. A few strikes in, Byleth manages to regain some ground and go on her own offensive, and she finds that Edelgard’s defense has become, if anything, better than her offense, and she feels a surge of pride for how much her former student’s skills have grown._

_It becomes a dance of blades, neither of them easily giving or taking ground. The close press of bodies when one goes in for a lunge that the other barely blocks, the sheen of sweat on Edelgard’s skin, the wildness of her white hair where it’s come loose. The intoxicating rush of adrenaline, and maybe something else, that Byleth feels, moreso when she manages after what feels like ages to disrupt Edelgard’s guard, pins her…_

_“I think…” Edelgard says from beneath her, her voice oddly strained, “I think that should suffice, my teacher. You win.”_

_“Mm,” Byleth says, helping her up. “It was a good match, though. Very close.”_

_When they’re decompressing in the sauna afterward, and she can’t help but notice the way Edelgard’s clothes cling to her in the heat, the beads of sweat as they roll down her skin, she swears she must be going mad.)_

Byleth finishes up at the training hall shortly before the war council, giving her just enough time to wash up and change beforehand.

* * *

Byleth knows why she has to attend war councils, even actively contributes when they discuss subjects that are within her wheelhouse. This does not prevent her from finding them interminably boring at most times.

It’s particularly dangerous when Edelgard is speaking, because she has an unfortunate tendency to tune out what she’s saying to focus on her instead.

_(It happens for the first time at a war council meeting. Byleth’s lost track of what Edelgard’s talking about—something about supply lines, something that she’s sure is important but the actual technicalities of which are outside of her realm of knowledge—but it’s hard for her to pay attention to that._

_Because her attention is caught on Edelgard’s lips._

_They’re a faint shade of pink, complementing the pale tone of Edelgard’s skin, and—she wants, impulsively, to kiss them._

_She’s dragged out of the train of thought by Edelgard trying to get her attention. “Professor. Were you paying attention?”_

_“Oh. No, I zoned out, sorry,” she says, to Edelgard’s mild exasperation.)_

It’s a boring meeting, as per usual, but Byleth manages the bare minimum of paying attention, and she considers that to be an accomplishment in and of itself.

* * *

_It’s a cool night out. Byleth pulls her cloak tighter around herself as she wanders through the monastery with no real destination in mind. She finds herself at the Goddess Tower, as well as finding someone unexpected there._

_“Well, this is nostalgic,” Edelgard says. She has a heavy jacket thrown over her nightclothes and her hair is pulled into a loose bun. She’s beautiful._

_“Mm,” Byleth says. “I couldn’t sleep.” She decides not to ask Edelgard if the same is true for her, because she suspects she already knows the answer._

_“It’s a beautiful night out tonight,” Edelgard says, and Byleth makes a sound of acknowledgement. “It’s been...a good night for thinking. About the future, and what I’m trying to accomplish...and also, what comes after that.”_

_Byleth hums. “‘The joys of idling,’ I believe you said.”_

_“...Eventually, yes, that is the goal. But I wonder...what of your future, my teacher? What do you plan on doing, when all of this is over?”_

_Byleth frowns. “...To be honest, I’ve never really thought about the future,” Byleth says. “Just enough to finish whatever the task was at hand, but...anything else is too abstract for me, I think.”_

_“...I suppose that’s not altogether surprising, coming from you. Still, I think it’s something worth thinking about.”_

_“Mm,” Byleth says. “I think I might want to become a teacher again at some point, maybe...I liked teaching.”_

_“I would like to see you do that. It was a role that suited you very well, my teacher.”_

_There’s a comfortable silence for a few moments. “I think,” Byleth says eventually. “I’ve...never really thought about the future before, but I think most of all, I’d be happy just staying by your side. I want to see this future—your vision—through.”_

_Edelgard stares at her for a moment, a surprised expression on her face. “I would be...happy to have you by my side, then. For as long as you’re willing.”_

__

* * *

_Byleth...isn’t really used to feeling things, at least not on a conscious level. And she feels a lot of things, these days._

_She especially isn’t sure how to classify her feelings for Edelgard, the desire she has to stay by her side, to advance her cause. Her feelings are powerful, dizzying, like nothing she’s experienced before._

_She recalls a conversation she had with Ingrid once, before the war. They had just finished a sparring match, and Byleth said, “Ingrid. You want to become a knight, right?”_

_“Yes, I do. Very much,” Ingrid said._

_“Why?” Byleth said, genuinely curious._

_“I admire their heroic ideals and their code. A knight...makes a vow of absolute loyalty to their lord. To uphold their lord’s values and beliefs and put their lord’s needs and goals ahead of their own, even if it’s at the cost of their own life. That bond...it’s something I truly admire,” she had said._

_She remembers this now, and she wonders if that’s what her relationship to Edelgard is like. A knighthood in all but name, her commitment to the cause, their bond...it’s something she’s going to have to think over more._

* * *

_It’s the middle of the night, and Byleth can’t sleep. She sits up, and she thinks about Edelgard._

_She thinks about Edelgard in her nightclothes, and she imagines her here, with her. Her collar, open, pale breasts bared for Byleth to suck on. Byleth unties her pants, pulls them down, while she imagines Edelgard’s nightgown hiked up in front of her, imagines that she is touching Edelgard in the same ways that she is touching herself._

_She wonders what Edelgard looks like, under all of the layers of clothes she always wears. Wonders if her nipples or her pussy are the same pretty pink as her lips. Wonders what it would be like to kiss her, wonders what it would be like to taste her._

_As she brings herself over the edge, she wonders what Edelgard looks like when she comes. And she wonders...if any of this is normal, to think about someone you admire this much._

_She wonders if this kind of thing would disqualify her from being Edelgard’s knight, and she thinks it probably would._

* * *

_They’ve just finished a battle. Byleth is bone-weary, with the strange mental exhaustion that comes from turning back time over and over to save her friends._

_But she looks over to where Edelgard stands, a few yards away from her—bloodstained, surely just as exhausted as she is, but somehow looking more regal than ever._

_The sun shines on Edelgard’s horned crown, turns her white hair into a halo. Byleth feels like she’s seen a true goddess._

_It’s the closest she’s ever felt to experiencing religion, she realizes—it’s not that she_ worships _Edelgard, per se...she’s not perfect, not infallible, and Byleth doesn’t always agree with her, her words or her actions or any of that. But, paradoxically, she thinks that’s why she can follow her. She knows she’s not perfect, knows the rough edges, but also she knows her ideals, knows the future she envisions, and knows that she can play a real role in making that a reality._

_She’s utterly human, and she’s someone Byleth knows she can believe in, has known it from the magnetic pull that’s drawn her to Edelgard from the very beginning. And for the moment, that’s all that really matters._

__

* * *

After the war council, Byleth and Dorothea meet up for tea as promised. Byleth brews up a pot of sweet apple blend, and while that’s steeping, Dorothea gives her a grin from across the table, fingers steepled together.

“So. Professor. Byleth. I wanted to ask you, what are your intentions with Edie?”

“My...intentions?”

“I think you know what I mean,” Dorothea says.

“I genuinely do not,” Byleth says flatly, pouring two cups of tea and handing one to Dorothea.

“You and Edie are clearly head over heels for each other,” Dorothea says, sipping her tea, “and neither of you exactly seem like the type to have a quick fling and just leave it like that. And those marks clearly weren’t from any fish I’ve ever heard of. So. What are your intentions with my best friend?”

“Head over heels? Us?”

“I do have eyes, you know.”

“I’m not...you think I’m in love with Edelgard?”

Dorothea takes a long-suffering drink of her tea. “Yes,” she finally says. “You are.”

“No, I’m not,” Byleth says, blinking. Dorothea stares at her. “Or at least...I don’t think I am?”

“Then how do you feel about her?”

“I...don’t know. I feel a lot of things about Edelgard, and they’re all...hard to define. I feel...admiration. Awe. Dedication. I believe in her cause, and I believe in her as a person, and...I want to stay by her side, no matter what.”

Dorothea nods. “And you’re happy when you’re around her?”

“...Yes.”

“You feel affection for her?”

“Yes.”

“You think she’s cute and you want to kiss her?”

A long pause. “...Yes. I do,” Byleth says.

“Hmmmm,” Dorothea hums, taking a long, pointed sip of her tea. “And you’re sure you don’t love her?”

“I…” Byleth takes a long sip of her tea, deep in thought. “I don’t know, but. I’m not sure if I can feel love.”

“Mm, well. Only you can be the judge of that, I suppose. But, while I’m not an expert on love, and you’re the best judge of your own feelings...from where I’m coming from, it sounds an awful lot like you’re in love.”

* * *

Byleth goes to visit Edelgard in her office again, still ruminating over her conversation with Dorothea. “Edelgard,” she says, knocking on the doorframe as she arrives, “I brought you food again. Vegetable pasta salad, this time.”

“Oh...thank you, my teacher,” she breathes, accepting the dishes that Byleth hands to her. “I...genuinely don’t know where I’d be if I didn’t have you looking out for me.”

Byleth perches herself on a corner of the desk, and Edelgard raises an eyebrow but doesn’t stop her. The two sit in comfortable silence together while Edelgard eats.

“El,” Byleth says eventually. “Why don’t you ever call me by my name?”

Edelgard pauses, setting down her fork. “I told you before, didn’t I? It’s...your proper title is a display of respect.”

“But you don’t...really believe in titles, do you?” Byleth says, deep in thought. “I can barely think of anyone who knows you who refers to you by any title, and you’re the emperor. So it feels...weird for you to be referring to anyone else by a title, I think.”

“...That and this are...entirely different matters. One is a relic of hereditary rule, which you are aware I intend to abolish. The other is...an earned position, and a role in which you have earned my personal respect.”

“But it’s not a role I am in any longer.”

“I don’t see why that matters,” Edelgard says, idly playing with her fork.

“I…” Byleth kneads her temples. “I suppose at this point my question isn’t so much why you call me your teacher, so much as it is why you don’t want to refer to me by name.”

“...Excuse me, my teacher?”

“The title is fine, but I’ve never heard you refer to me by name. And...I’m curious why.”

“It...just never occurs to me, I suppose. Would you prefer it if I called you Professor Byleth?” she says, evenly.

“You don’t have to use the title at all, El,” Byleth says, shaking her head.

“I...will bear that in mind.”

“You seem uncomfortable with that. Why is that?”

“ _Listen_ ,” she says, somewhat abruptly. “My teacher. This...maybe this is just a matter that is. Uncomfortable for me to talk about. Maybe I have my reasons, and maybe I would prefer to leave it at that.”

Byleth is silent for a long moment. “If you’re genuinely uncomfortable,” Byleth says eventually, softly, “I will let the matter drop. But...I’m genuinely curious, and I. Genuinely want to know. If I have done anything to make you uncomfortable…”

“It’s...not that,” Edelgard says. “It’s not you at all, or anything that you have done.”

“Then…”

“It’s...I suppose it’s been. A manner of distancing myself. Of maintaining a proper distance from you, or at least attempting to.”

“Why?”

“As I’ve said, I don’t wish to talk about it.”

“Edelgard. I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable around me, and I don’t want to be distant from you, so…”

Edelgard sighs, a heavy, weary sound that reverberates through the room. “I…just don’t want to say it. Because if I say it, it will ruin everything.”

“It won’t.”

“You don’t know that.”

“But I know you.”

A long, weighty pause. “I don’t...refer to you by name, _Byleth_ ,” and she says her name like a prayer, and Byleth feels a strange feeling in her gut at the sound, “because...I have feelings for you. Hopeless, overwhelming feelings that I’m all too aware have no hope of reciprocation. And so I have attempted to maintain my distance, maintain _propriety_ , in order to shield myself. It hasn’t...entirely worked, I admit, but…”

“You have feelings for me,” Byleth says.

“Yes,” Edelgard says, clearly trying to force her voice to remain even. “I’m...in love with you.”

“Oh,” Byleth says.

“So now that we have cleared the air, hopefully we can lay this matter to rest, along with my feelings,” Edelgard says, a bitterness in her tone that surprises Byleth.

“No,” Byleth says, wrinkling her nose slightly.

“No?”

“I don’t want that,” Byleth says. “Give me a moment.” Edelgard is silent while Byleth collects her thoughts. “I’m not...used to feeling emotions, not in a conscious way, anyway. It’s...still something I am getting used to. I think because of…”

“Because of what Rhea did to you?”

“Yeah. And so...while I do feel things, I’m not always very good at...knowing what I’m feeling. Identifying my feelings, putting words to them.”

“I see.”

“I don’t...know what I feel for you, El. But I know that I have a lot of feelings about, a lot of feelings _for_ , you. I have for a long time, and it’s just been...growing, over time. I don’t know how to classify those feelings, but...El. How can you assume my feelings, when I don’t even know?”

Edelgard is silent, staring at her with the shock plain on her face. Her hands tremble, and Byleth gently grasps one of them.

“...I don’t know if I’m in love with you. I don’t know what love _is_. But I know...the strength of my feelings for you.

“El. Let me show you.”

“...All right,” Edelgard says, her voice soft, hesitant, but carrying a clear spark of hope.

Byleth leans down, pulls Edelgard up, forward, into her arms. Lifts one hand up to Edelgard’s cheek and captures her lips in a kiss. The angle is awkward, with the difference in height between the desk and Edelgard’s chair, but Edelgard’s lips are soft, pliant against hers.

She transfers herself to Edelgard’s lap, straddles her, to deepen the kiss, moving her lips against hers. Explores her mouth with a fervor as her hands wander, eventually moving to undo the buttons closing the top section of her dress.

“My—Byleth, wait,” she says, hesitantly. “Not...out here in the open, like this. We should...move somewhere more private, before...taking this any further.”

“Hm,” Byleth says, thinking. “The archbishop’s room.”

“We. What,” Edelgard says, shock apparent on her face.

“It’s closer than the dormitories, and there’s more space.”

“You want us to...in Rhea’s room.”

“We don’t have to if you’re uncomfortable with it.”

“...No, mostly I’m just surprised that you suggested it at all. But...yes, we can. If you want.”

* * *

They make their way to the former archbishop’s chambers, and Byleth suddenly feels...nervous, as she watches Edelgard undo her hair. “Edelgard,” she says, her mouth suddenly dry. “I...want to see you. All of you. Is that all right?”

“You...want to see me naked, you mean.”

“Yeah,” she says. “You...saw me, before. So it...seems fair, right?”

“...All right,” Edelgard says. “...You’ll. Forgive me for being nervous,” she adds as Byleth helps her undress. “You’ve seen most of me already, of course, but...you will be the first person I show...all of me.”

“Then it is a great honor for me to see you,” she says. Gradually, between the two of them, they work off all of Edelgard’s layers of clothing, until she is left in only her undergarments. “May I do the honors?”

“You may.”

Byleth unhooks Edelgard’s bra, feeling as if she’s unwrapping a gift. She pulls down the straps—right first, then the left—and lets it fall to the floor. She then kneels reverently in front of Edelgard and pulls down her panties, letting Edelgard step out of them. She takes in the emperor in all of her glory and she breathes, “You’re beautiful.”

“I...thank you…” Edelgard says. “I feel. Exposed, and it’s making me feel somewhat self-conscious. With you fully clothed, and me…”

“Do you want me to undress?”

“I think that would help. Maybe not all the way, but…”

“Mm,” Byleth says. She pulls off her shirt, followed by her shorts, and then, after some thought, her leggings, leaving her in just her underwear. “Does that help?”

“That’s...better, yes.”

“Good,” Byleth says, before gently leading Edelgard over to the bed. She straddles her once more, hands over her hips, and kisses her, deep and sweet, until both of them need to come up for air. Kisses her again, down her jaw, down her neck. Gently coaxes her onto the bed, on her back, and follows her.

Ever since she saw Edelgard’s scars for the first time, she’s wanted to kiss them, so she does so now. “Can I have your hand?” she says, and when Edelgard holds out her right hand for her, she starts kissing the scars on her hand—the back of her fingers, the back of her hand, the base of her thumb, her wrist.

“Ah, you’re…” she says. “I see.”

“Is this all right?” she says, pausing her trail of kisses down Edelgard’s wrist.

“It’s. Strange,” she says, “but it’s all right, yes.”

So Byleth continues, slowly making her way up Edelgard’s right arm, to her shoulder, to the top curve of her breast, then pulls away, starting on the other arm. Makes her way to the top of her right breast, then dips down to the scarring around her heart. She spends a long time there, and...she can hear, _feel_ , Edelgard’s heart beating. It’s a surreal and wondrous thing, experiencing vicariously this thing that every living creature has except for her.

She then works her way outward, kissing a trail to Edelgard’s right breast. Her breasts are really quite beautiful—not particularly big, perhaps, but lovely to look at and soft to her touch. She takes the nipple into her mouth, takes in the hitch in Edelgard’s breath. She spends some time there, tracing patterns over her nipple with her tongue, sucking on it, trying to coax soft noises out of her. Does the same with her left breast, before dipping down to kiss the inside of her ankles.

“This is...strange,” Edelgard says, as Byleth works her way up her legs. There’s less scarring here, but Byleth still takes the time to kiss all of them. She makes it to the inside of her upper thighs and pauses there, breathes her in, takes in her scent. It’s intoxicating.

Her hair, she notes, is white there too, and it looks softer than her own coarse pubic hair, as well as being better maintained. It’s...not the main focus of her interest, of course, but it is interesting to note.

“Are you ready, El?” she says, her right hand over Edelgard’s hip, her left hand holding Edelgard’s thigh in place.

“Yes,” Edelgard says, and she’s truly beautiful, spread out before her, white hair once again a halo beneath her...she is _resplendent_ , and Byleth is filled with both awe and affection for her.

She leans in, gives her an experimental lick. Watches her breath hitch. Licks again, tracing the outside of her labia with her tongue. Catches it inside her mouth and sucks, lightly, causing Edelgard to stifle a moan. Licks all of the way up, traces her tongue over Edelgard’s clit, leading to another hitch of her breath.

She dips down, takes in her taste. It’s intoxicating, just like her. Works her way back up, then dips back down for another taste. Then again. She feels drunk. “I think...I think I’m becoming addicted to you, El,” she says, pausing in her exploration briefly before going right back to it.

“What...does that...even mean,” Edelgard says, before biting back another moan.

Byleth doesn’t answer, her mouth too busy. She finds she likes her taste both outside and in, alternating between the salty, subtle taste of her labia and the heavier, headier taste between them.

She wants...she realizes that she wants to coax an authentic, honest moan out of Edelgard, and so she redoubles her efforts, licking patterns into her skin, sucking, giving extra attention to her clit, then working her way back down, then back up again, making her shudder, stifling a moan again, shuddering again…

“” _Please_ ,” murmurs Edelgard, and she continues, licking a stripe up her labia, licking her clit, down again, sucking particularly hard for a moment, and _there_ , a moan tears its way out of her throat, soft but audible, and it’s one of the most beautiful sounds Byleth has heard.

She doubles down, wanting to hear more, wanting to make Edelgard _feel_ more, kissing and licking and sucking, slowly coaxing out more and more soft sounds, until she can tell she’s getting close, breathing heavily, no longer able to restrain herself, and she says, “My teach— _Byleth_ ,” and—

She keeps going, while Edelgard crests that hill, as she’s coming down, and then she’s content to just lie there, with her, while Edelgard recovers. “...Thank you,” she says. There’s sweat on her brow, and Byleth once again finds herself in awe of how beautiful she is.

“I...adore you, El,” she says. “I really do.”

Edelgard huffs out a breath. “Then...I adore you, too,” she says, sounding faintly amused, and Byleth takes her hands into hers, strokes the base of Edelgard’s thumb with her own.


End file.
